Sakiko
by InkFingerTips6
Summary: Kakashi first saw Sakiko Haiji when she competed in the Chunin Exams. This is a story about their lives, how they became intertwined on this road called life.
1. Chapter 1

He remembered the first day he saw her. It was during the final fights of the chunin exams. She had been the only rookie, at age 10 to compete in the exams. She was placed on a team with Itachi Uchiha and a ninja named Akira Hyuuga. He later discovered that Akira had died in the Forest of Death, Itachi and Sakiko had taken turns carrying him back to the tower, he died before the medics could get him to the hospital.

At 15, he had just taken the ANBU exams and was now a member of the most elite and deadly force Konoha had to offer. He had never really been interested in the Chunin exams but Ibiki had told him about this girl and the Uchiha. Aparently they were exceptional. Then again if you graduate from the academy at such a young age, you tend you be pretty exceptional.

As he entered the stadium, he saw the names of the competetors listed on the wall along with their pictures posted next to them. Uchiha Itachi was a true Uchiha from the pale skin to the black hair and onyx colored eyes. His face was stoic, his posture perfect, his eyes cold. The boy had graduated from the academy at age 7, and he had the eyes of a killer.

Next ot his photo was another of a girl, the name Sakiko Haiji printed beneath her name. Her entire face bright and smiliing. She was a member of the Haiji clan. The necromancers. She too fit the profile of her clan pale almost transparent skin, rail thin, black hair and liquid mercury colored eyes. The tattoo for the kanji of death was on the left side of her cheek. From looking at her, he could tell that she would grow up to be a beauty.

He then looked at her competition, all of her competators were at least twice her size, even the fittest of the kunichi out weighed the girl by about 20 pounds. All of these nin also looked older than she and Itachi as well. They were at the least 3 years their senior.

He watched the battles, how the Uchiha had defeated a ninja from the Land of Water. Watching the boy fight, Kakashi could tell that shortly after being promoted to chunin that he would easily become an ANBU Captain. He wondered if his younger brother would show as much potential as he did. He kept watching the battle, and instantly noticed that difference between Itachi and Obioto. Where Itachi faught without mercy, not really caring if he killed his opponent. Would this boy feel the same way about his teammates that Obioto had? or would he sacrifice them for the good of the mission? The obvious difference between the Uchiha protegy and Obioto was the ability to use the Shringan. It took Obioto 2 years longer to activiate, whereas hearsay was that Itachi had been able to activate his at 5. The battle ended brutally, Itachi had defeated his opponent, but there was a serious gash on his left arm, blood dripping down his face, and he walked with a limp. Bruises and dirt covered his body. It was true that the Uchiha had been the more skilled ninja, but as his father had once told him. _It is difficult for youth and inexperience to beat old age and deciet. _Itachi simply did not have as much experience as the ninja who he battled, nor was he as large. However, Itachi had both the shiringan and the legendary Uchiha speed.

But he had come out on top, that was all that mattered.

Watching the Haiji girl battle was something that he had never seen before. She stood out in the field, faced up against a ninja from the Iwagakure. He looked to be about 13, not a huge boy but he dwarfed Sakiko. He watched as she preformed hand signs quickly activating her kekki genkai

He had heard that like the shirangan, the satsuriku, the Haiji clan's kekki genkai, had derived from the Byukagan.

Legend had it that a shinigami had fallen in love with a Hyuuga man. Their children had the ability to see the dead and have them do their bidding.

He watched the girl, her movements were fast, faster even that those of an Uchiha. She ran laps around the ninja from the Land of Stone, using her kunai to inflict multiple cuts all over his body.

But despite her speed, she was inexperienced. A rookie.

The boy make four shadow clones and each threw multiple sebon needles at the small girl. She was hit on the left side of her body, before she could come to a complete stop, the ninja was on top of her, he punched her in the stomach before throwing her across the arena. She hit the wall hard, a large crack forming where she had hit it. She coughed and a trail of blood dripped from her mouth. He was on top of her again, preforming handsigns quickly, he hit her with an earth release jutsu. The ground around the small girl suddenly began to drop. She leapt out of the hole quickly and landed hard on the ground, her knees giving away from the impact.

Sakiko stood up shakily and yanked three sebon needles from her arm, two more from her leg. She threw them back at the boy as he ran towards her, and then slid into a fighting stance. Her tai-jutzu was good, but she just wasn't physically as strong as the male before her. She was skilled enough that was true, but his hits were harder than hers, despite the fact that she was blocking. His hits slid her back a few inches each time and her arms were begininng to show bruises. She finally managed to get a good hit in and she kicked him in the air where he landed hard about 10 feet away.

She then stopped and stood before him, Kakashi then watched as a shadow suddnely crept out of the ground behind her. At first he thought that she had somehow managed to use a technique from the Nara Clan. He activated his Shiringan and then noticed that the shadow had a chakara signature, it was white.

The shadow slithered over the ground, leaving her behind. She released the jutsu and smirked. The boy tried to back away from the shadow but was too slow, the shadow engulfed him and a blood curtling scream sounded from within. The shadow then dropped to the ground and made its way back to the girl. It then loomed above her and dropped to the ground behind her.

The boy was laying on the ground, appearing to be unconscious.

The proctor walked into the arena and looked at the young boy on the ground. "We need a medic!" he screamed.

Kakashi looked back at the girl who was still yanking the remaining sebon needles from her arm, side, and leg. The proctor walked over towards her and raised her arm above her head.

"The winner, Haiji Sakiko!" he cried out.

The entire arena burst into applause, the same way that they did for the Uchiha boy. A weak smile graced her features as her chest heaved with breath. Her silver eyes glowed with pride. She then walked with the proctor and disappered below the arena.


	2. Chapter 2

It wasn't until two years later that Kakashi saw the Haiji girl again. He had heard about her throughout the village, she was powerful to say the least. The Hokage was beginning to take interest in her as well and he soon recommended her to take the Jonin test. Kakashi was sent to test that theory, to see if the 12 year old girl was indeed ready for such a challenge.

He watched her from the trees overlooking training ground 2. The girl had grown up over the past two years; she was dressed in the standard issue chunin flack vest, which did nothing to flatter her figure that was similar to that of a 12 year old boy. She wore a pair of black kunochi shorts with fishnet leggings and black ninja shoes on her feet. Her ebony hair was yanked back in an intricate braid/bun keeping her hair out of her face. She was currently throwing shuriken and kunai at the targets placed on the trees surrounding her. Her aim was good, not great. When she ran out of weapons she began to walk towards the target closest to her.

A kunai suddenly whisked past his head, almost causing him to lose his balance on the tree branch that he was crouched on. 'Maybe her aim was better than I thought' he thought to himself

"Can I help you?" she inquired as she began to yank her weapons out of the target. He had thought she was out of weapons, obviously she had sensed him from the moment that he arrived.

"Just observing." Kakashi replied dropping out of the tree and landing in front of her.

"Hatake-sama." She greeted.

"Hello Sakiko," He replied dropping the formalities. "Please just call me Kakashi, I am not that much older than you."

The girl smiled. "And why, may I ask, are you _observing_ me. Are you some kind of pervert?" she teased.

A blush graced his cheeks, he was glad that he was wearing his trademark mask. He didn't want to admit that he had just started reading _Icha Icha Paradise_ by Jiraiya-sempai.

"Just to see if you are experienced enough to compete in the jonin exams." Kakashi stated matter of factly.

"So, you're just going to watch me throw my weapons at targets?" the girl inquired.

"No I am thinking something along the lines of a spar. No genjutsu, no ninjutsu, just taijutsu." Kakashi stated, placing a hand on his hip.

"Why no genjutsu or ninjutsu?" she inquired.

"Because at some point, you will run out of chakara." Kakashi replied simply.

The girl crossed her arms and looked at him with a _you've got to be kidding type of look_. "Me, a chunin, fight against an ANBU?" she asked.

Kakashi smirked and slid into a fighting stance. "Don't worry I'll go easy on you." He replied.

An insulted look crossed her face before she charged towards him throwing punch, he caught her wrist and threw her away from him, and she flipped in the air and landed in a crouch. She jumped to her feet and the two met in a hand to hand fight.

Kakashi was stronger, but she was faster. She dodged most of his hits, and was fast enough to hit him during the briefest moments when there was an opening. He kicked her in the chest, she flew back and hit a tree, he ran towards her, ready to throw a punch, but instead hit the tree when she moved out of the way at the last minute and instead kicked his feet out from under him.

Kakashi fell to the ground and rolled over just in time to miss a punch from the small girl and jumped out of the way using a kunai to block the shuriken she threw at him as he landed on the ground. He landed in a defensive stance and blocked another attack from Sakiko.

They continued to battle, the sound of kunai colliding echoed throughout the training ground. He saw a small opening and kicked the kunai out of the girl's hand. She didn't even hesitate as she used her thin arm to block his next attack. When her arm was up, Kakashi kicked her away where she collided with the dummy used at the training area. He sprinted over as she got to her feet and pinned her against the tree.

The girl struggled beneath him, as he ground his hips against her, his thighs against hers. He pinned her wrists above her head and held his kunai at her throat. "I win." he stated before stepping away from her as she slid down to the ground.

She glared up at him her breathing hard. "What does that mean?" she demanded.

Kakashi whipped away the line of blood dripping from his eyebrow and sat down before her, his breathing still hard.

"I did not expect such a challenge from you." He replied.

She looked up at him. "What does that mean?" she demanded.

"It means that I am going to report to the Hokage that you are prepared to compete in the jonin exams." Kakashi answered, offering her his hand to help her up.

She accepted his hand, and allowed him to yank her to her feet.

"Kakashi, when are the jonin exams scheduled to be held." She inquired.

"They are scheduled in two months' time." He answered.

"Will you help me train?"

He looked at her. "I…"

"Please, you are one of the strongest, ninja in Konoha. If anyone can teach me, it's you." She half begged.

"Sakiko, I am flattered. But I do not think that it would be wise." He answered.

"Why not?" she demanded.

"I am an ANBU, I will not always be around." He replied.

"Then whenever you can, please!" this time she was begging.

Kakashi looked at her. Finally he answered. "Yes, we will begin tomorrow."

The girl smiled brightly and bowed deeply. "Thank you." She replied her silver eyes practically glowing.

Kakashi waved to her and vanished in a puff of smoke.

He soon arrived at the Hokage's office. Knocking respectfully on the door he waited until he heard the response from within.

"Enter."

He stepped through the door and bowed deeply before the Hokage.

"I am here to report my observations of Sakiko Haiji; I believe that she is capable of competing in the upcoming jonin exams."

The Hokage smiled beneath his hat.


	3. Chapter 3

He had been training with the Haiji girl as frequently as he could. However, his ANBU missions consistently got in the way. He ended up just giving her homework. Simply leaving scrolls of instructions, jutsus, and workouts for her to do until he returned from a mission. Each time he returned he was impressed to find that she had mastered or at least had a basic grasp of the expectations that he had set out for her.

The times that he got to train with her and spend time with her, the more Kakashi grew fond of the girl. He had to admit that he still did not understand her clan's kekki genkai, the Satsuriku , then again almost no one outside of the clan did. When they used ninjutsu and genjutsu in their spars, he would catch glimpses of the strange shadow that resided within her. Once, he even thought that he saw it, during a sunset. Instead of seeing Sakiko's shadow of a stick figure wearing a chunin vest, he saw the creature. It was enormous, although it had a skeletal shape to it. The immense black wings flapped as it moved with her. Then as suddenly as it had appeared, the creature was gone.

The jounin exams were scheduled for the next day, so he gave her an easy workout and said he would buy her dinner at the ichiruki ramen. As they sat down, she was soon greeted by many other genin and chunin alike wishing her a happy birthday. Kakashi had to admit that he was surprised to see the ever stoic Itachi Uchiha appeared with a small box perfectly wrapped to wish her a happy birthday. After a short conversation and an awkward side-hug the Uchiha wished her good luck at the jounin exams, saying that he would be watching and gave Kakashi a courteous bow.

"Thank you." She replied with a small blush on her cheeks. Kakashi couldn't help but notice how much the blush contrasted with her pale skin. She looked like a geisha.

"Why didn't you tell me it was your birthday?" he inquired once the crowd had settled down.

"You never asked." She replied simply before she took a bite of her ramen.

Kakashi opened his mouth to reply, but sighed, she had a point. He never really bothered to ask. Then again aside from the fairly surface level conversations they had between training sessions he really didn't know too much about her. She was dark that much he knew. But she was a warm darkness, the one lovers share at night, holding one another.

"Sakiko," he started. "I am sorry that I haven't gotten a chance to get to know you." he said softly.

She set down her chopsticks and looked over at him. "Don't apologize, you have been busy. Besides you and I are alike, we do not like give ourselves away easily."

Kakashi couldn't help but smile beneath his mask. She was observant that was sure.

"Are you prepared for the jounin exams?" he asked.

"As prepared as I can be, they don't really tell you much about them." She replied.

"They change every time, when I competed it was similar to the third round of the chunnin exams." He replied.

"You don't think that we would have to do the forest of death do you?" she asked.

Kakashi's gaze softened. The death of Akira Hyuuga was obviously something still on her mind, similar to the death of Obioto.

"I don't know." He replied softly.

A silence fell between the two as they ate their food thoughtfully.

"Kakashi, whatever happened to your teammates? Are they ANBU too?" she asked.

Kakashi put down his chopsticks and looked at the girl. "I lost my first teammate, Obioto on the first mission I lead as a chuunin. There was an ambush, and he got killed saving me." He explained, choosing to leave out the part about their strained relationship, how he was Kakashi's only true friend, the way that Rin stopped talking to him after that.

"What about the other?" she asked softly.

"Rin, left the village 5 years ago, no one has heard from her. She's assumed dead." He replied sadly.

The girl remained silent. She knew death, she knew what it was like to have a teammate die, at the tender age of ten, she had witnessed the murder of her teammate. She had been raised in the darkness of death.

"I'm sorry, Kakashi" she replied softly.

He took a drink of my sake, "It's the burden that comes with the life of being a ninja." He replied.

She nodded solemnly.

A second silence fell between the two of them, this one hanging in the air. Kakashi noticed that the young girl had stopped eating, after such a conversation he decided that it was probably time for them to part ways.

"Let's get you home, you have a big day tomorrow." He stated placing enough money on the counter to pay for the two of them.

"Kakashi, you didn't have to pay!" she exclaimed.

"Don't worry about it." He said as he began to walk away.

She jumped off her stool and followed after him.

They parted ways at the street that lead to the Haiji Compound. She waved to him before vanishing into the darkness.

Kakashi then walked until he reached the crowded streets of the city and jumped onto the rooftops, the fastest way to reach his apartment. He slipped in through his window, not bothering entering the building through the front door. Although he wouldn't admit it, he was afraid of his landlady, he was behind on his rent again, the brutal woman could put Yoshino Nara to shame.

He landed in the living room of his apartment and after undressing, laid in his bed. He stared at the ceiling for what seemed like hours.

Finally at 2 in the morning, he sat up and replaced his clothing. He vanished from his apartment in a puff of smoke and reappeared before the looming obsidian monument for fallen ninja.

He walked slowly around the looming monument, silently reading the names of his fallen comrades. He finally stopped in front of Obioto's name.

"Hi, Obioto." He greeted softly. There was no reply, there never was, just the memory of the day the young Uchiha boy had died. Kakashi holding the boy's hand tightly in his grasp, tears staining his mask; Rin working furiously trying to heal the wounds. Then the pain of Rin implanting the shringan into his eye.

"I miss you." He whispered.

He felt a present near him and looked over to see Sakiko standing before the monument. He knew where she was, looking at the names that began with 'H', staring at the name Akira Hyuuga.

He walked over to where the small girl was standing and put a hand gently on her shoulder.

"It's my fault he's dead." She replied softly.

Kakashi looked down at her, but remained silent.

"It was my idea to attack the nin from the Land of Lightening, they were the first team we saw and we needed a Scroll of Heaven. We were ambushed by four other teams, the Lightening genin had made a temporary pact to attack us first." She explained. "I should have been more on guard. I should have felt the other nin gathering around us. I should have noticed the shadow clone run off into the woods to tell the other teams where we were."

Kakashi was shocked. Never before had multiple teams made an alliance to take out one team.

"Sakiko…" he began.

"Don't… Itachi has already tried to explain, but I should have noticed. I should have been able to pick up the other nin"

Kakashi sighed. He knew this feeling all too well, he still felt that way.

He hesitantly placed a hand on her slender shoulder. "I know how you feel." He whispered.

She turned and looked up at him, although her eyes were questioning, she did not press him.

"Obioto, he saved my life. I was leading the mission and Rin got captured, I wasn't going to go rescue her. I put the mission before everything else. I wasn't on guard and a rock slide almost killed me, Obioto pushed me out of the way in time." He dropped his hand from her shoulder, and turned back towards the monument.

He was surprised to feel a slender calloused hand encircle his in a comforting gesture. He was surprised to say the least, his body stiffening ever so slightly. Her grip was loose, cool and comforting, although she didn't look at him. Her eyes were still focused on the late Hyuuga boy's name. He squeezed her hand gently, allowing the feeling of comfort and temporary support engulf him.

They stood together, each of them a thousand miles away, but connected by their loose grips on each other's hands.

An indeterminate amount of time later, he snapped back into reality.

"You should be getting rest, your exam is tomorrow." He said softly, releasing his grip on her hand.

She looked up at him with a soft smile. "OK. Have a good night, Kakashi." She replied just as softly before tuning to walk away.

"Sakiko," Kakashi called to her back. She turned around, "Thank you." He finished. She waved softly and began to walk away.

Kakashi watched her leave, and for once a shiver did not run through his body when he saw the creature's shadow attached to her footsteps.


	4. Chapter 4

Kakashi waited impatiently in the tower in the forest of death, Sakiko had signed the release form two days ago. She, along with Asuma Sarutobi , were partnered together to fight their way through the forest of death. They were paired together against six other jonin pairs. They would fight their way through the forest against both tokubestu and regular ranking jonin and other competitors until they reached the tower in the middle of the forest. The rules this time were simple, if they didn't reach the tower in three days' time, alive, and with both scrolls in hand, they didn't pass.

Two teams had been sent to the hospital already, both with severe wounds. A lone chunin had also been sent to the hospital, his teammate nowhere to be found. It was assumed that the teammate was still alive somewhere in the forest. He had seen Sakiko's black shadow, its huge black wings flapping above the trees for about ten seconds before vanishing once again. They must have been in a battle, Sakiko's creature was probably searching for an ambush.

He remembered the look on her face when she learned that Asuma was going to be her teammate. Not because she didn't like Asuma, quite the contrary, they knew each other well. She obviously was not expecting a teammate. It wasn't until then that he saw her worry.

"_I won't lose another teammate in this damn forest." _ She said to him.

He knelt down in front of her and placed his hands on her shoulders. _"You won't"_ he replied.

Kakashi hoped that she was able to keep her word, and he his. He was fond of Asuma as well, he was one of the closest things to a friend that Kakashi allowed himself to have. The two would go out for sake, train together, and the likes; but Kakashi could not confide in Asuma the same way that Asuma could confide in him.

As he ambled towards the south facing glass window, he was surprised to find Itachi Uchiha standing there watching the forest. "Itachi." Kakashi greeted as he approached.

The boy turned and bowed. "Hatake –sempai" he said in response.

"What are you doing here?" Kakashi inquired as he came to stand a comfortable distance away but next to the Uchiha boy.

"The same thing you are, in hopes that Sakiko will pass the exam." Itachi replied.

"I saw her shadow creature earlier." Kakashi stated.

"Her shinigami? Yes, that would make sense. Ever since Akira died, she will send out the shinigami to check her surroundings." Itachi explained.

"Shinigami?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes. She and he are connected." Itachi replied.

"How?" Kakashi asked.

"I do not know," The Uchiha answered. "All I know is that if she asks him for help, he will be there."

Kakashi rubbed the back of his head in confusion. The shinigami didn't behave like the monster that was sealed within the Kazekage's son, constantly appearing to protect its host. Kakashi had heard the stories of the boy about Saskue Uchiha's age that had already killed seven people. Word had it that the Kazekage had even sent word to Konoha asking for help.

"Is it part of the Satsuriku?" Kakashi found himself asking.

"I don't know. It is connected to her somehow." Itachi replied.

Kakashi glanced at the boy, the protégé of the Uchiha Clan, already an ANBU and on his way to becoming a captain from what he understood. The boy was strong and passionate about his village and due to the traumatic experience of the 3rd Shinobi War, Itachi tended to rely on his intellect and his ability to read other people's emotions more than violence. Although when he must defend himself, Itachi's use of the Shringan was unmatched. It shocked that copy nin that Itachi did not know much about his teammate. Then again, they only trained together for about 3 months before competing in the chunin exams and almost literally going their separate ways. Sakiko, although a protégé in her own right, did not have the same gift as Itachi. Not even a year after becoming a chunin, Itachi had passed the Jonin exams before he was soon recruited for the ANBU.

Returning his attention back towards the window, he noticed a cloud of smoke erupt from the trees. Instantly he clenched his hands into fist, a set of explosion tags he just gone off. He looked at Itachi from the corner of his eye, noticing the way that his jaw was clenched. He was worried about his former teammate, just as much as Kakashi was about the girl he had been training with for the past two months. He watched the sky intently, wondering if he would see the shinigami that was attached to the girl. He didn't see anything.

"She wouldn't have fallen for something like exploding tags." Itachi stated.

Kakashi slowly found himself nodding in agreement with the Uchiha boy. Sakiko was smart, and although he was rash and sometimes lazy, Asuma would not have fallen for something like that either. But Kakashi's mind wandered. He knew that Shikaku Nara and Inochi Yamanaka were both hidden somewhere in the forest. If Sakiko and Asuma had been caught by the two members of the renown Ino-Shika-Cho team, they could be in trouble. Sure Sakiko could probably escape from the Nara's shadow jutsu, but almost no one could escape from the mind transfer technique.

The two stood in silence both lost in their own thoughts about the Haiji girl who was fighting both physically and mentally through the forest.

It was two in the morning when he was awoken by the sound of a bell. He had fallen asleep in one of the chairs waiting for the arrival of Asuma and Sakiko. He rubbed his one visible eye quickly and ran a hand through his hair before standing up and walking down the stairs towards the main lobby where the teams would meet with Ibiki. He didn't bother running, he didn't want to be disappointed like he had been last time. The first team that arrived, had failed. They were taken to the tower bound and gagged, captured by the enemy. The second team to arrive was a team of a Hyuuga boy and an Inuzuka boy. The two looked worse for wear but had successfully completed the mission assigned to them. He did the math in his head as he walked down the stairs, either Sakiko and Asuma had made it, or they were like the other team bound and gagged. Or against all odds, it could be the lone chunin that had been separated from their teammate.

He stopped in the entrance of the lobby to see Sakiko and Asuma standing before Ibiki. Asuma had a smirk on his face and unlit cigarette in his mouth. But despite the smirk on his face, Asuma was beat up. He sported a black eye, a wound on his forehead, and bandages wrapped around both hands. Kakashi knew that next to Asuma but completely hidden from view was Sakiko. He stepped to the side trying to get a good look at the girl, but Asuma beat him to the punch.

"We need to get Sakiko to a medic." He said.

It was then that Kakashi noticed the drops of blood that were falling to the ground. He stepped into the room to see Sakiko grasping her left shoulder. There was a bloody bandage wrapped haphazardly around it, and blood on her hand. She had a few cuts and bruises on her face and hands, but nothing serious.

The medics arrived quickly, and lead Sakiko and Asuma away. "They did it, Kakashi" Ibiki stated.

Kakashi could not help the smile that formed beneath his mask.

He found Asuma sitting by the window in his recovery room, blowing cigarette smoke out the window.

"Congratulations, Asuma." Kakashi said as he stepped into the room.

Asuma turned and snubbed out his ciagarette before standing shakily to his feet and embracing Kakashi in a "man hug". Kakashi froze and clapped the other man awkwardly on the back. He still wasn't one for a lot of physical contact.

"Thanks Kakashi, that Haiji girl, she is something else." Asuma said.

Kakashi nodded in agreement.

"We got separated about five miles from here, I was ambushed. I fought but was taken down, one of the men had a katana and was about to finish me, when Sakiko jumped in the way and took the hit in her shoulder. Then the shadow creature appeared, and literally ate him, then it reappeared and spit him out. When Sakiko blocked the attack I managed to knock the other guy out, then we ran like hell." Asuma summarized

"How did she find you?" Kakashi asked.

"I don't know." Asuma replied.

Kakashi sat and pondered for a moment. He wondered if the shinigami had something to do with this. From what he knew, shinigami weren't allowed to directly interfere with mortal affairs. But then again, it would do what Sakiko asked it, at least according to Itachi.

"Do you think it was that weird shadow that's attached to her. Does she have a demon within her like the Uzamaki kid?" Asuma asked.

"I don't think so, Itachi said it was a shinigami." Kakashi replied.

Asuma sighed. "I don't know much about the Haiji clan, their abilities have freaked me out to be honest."

"I don't know much either…" Kakashi replied.

Asuma yawned and stretched. "I need to get some rest, Kakashi, that and smoke another cigarette, don't give me that look…I do not have a problem. Sakiko is in the next room." He replied to Kakashi's unasked question.

"Thank you. Goodnight Asuma. Congratulations on your accomplishment." Kakashi said before exiting the room.

He walked to Sakiko's room and knocked on the door. When he didn't hear a response he knocked again. Still nothing. He knocked once more and then walked into the dark room.

He saw Sakiko sitting in the windowsill staring at the forest.

"Hi Kakashi." She said softly, not bothering to look at him.

Kakashi walked towards the windowsill and looked out the window beside her. "Congratulations, Sakiko" he whispered.

A half smile appeared on her features. "I saw him." She said.

"Who?" Kakashi asked.

"Akira."

Kakashi found himself staring at the girl in shock. The Hyuuga boy was dead, his name on the monument. He was buried in the Hyuuga compound. Sakiko would remember, she and Itachi carried his body to the tower. Then his mind finally slowed down. She was a Haiji, she could talk to and see the dead.

"Why was he still in the forest?" Kakashi inquired. "Shouldn't he have passed on?"

Sakiko nodded. "He was still there, he's the one who told me where Asuma was."

"Why did he not pass on?" Kakashi asked.

"He said he had to make sure that I made jonin, and said that he didn't blame me for his death." Sakiko stated staring out the window

"You don't believe him do you?" Kakashi asked.

"No." Sakiko replied simply.

"Did you help him pass on?" Kakashi inquired.

A small smile formed on her lips then, "Yes, he has finally allowed himself to move on."

"Then why don't you allow yourself to move on?" Kakashi asked.

" Have you allowed yourself to move on from the death of your teammates, Kakashi? Because I can't afford to think like that." She replied looking at him with her hauntingly beautiful mercury eyes.

She caught him there, he was at the monument almost every night honoring one of his fallen friends from the wars. He had already lost too many to count. He was just thankful that he had not lost Asuma or Sakiko.

"No, I haven't…" he said softly.

"I know." She replied just as gently.

They both turned their attention back to the window looking out at the shadows formed by the moon as it illuminated the earth. Kakashi couldn't help but notice the way that eyes seemed to shimmer in the moonlight.

"I should go, you need your rest. That shoulder of yours needs to heal before you can even consider training."

"Thank you, Kakashi. For agreeing to train with me, for everything. I do not think that I would have made jonin without your guidance." She said as she stood and began to walk towards her bed.

Kakashi smiled beneath his mask. "You're welcome Sakiko." He replied.

She carefully climbed into her bed as Kakashi walked out the door. He couldn't help the smile that was still on his face as he closed the door behind him.


	5. Chapter 5

Kakashi didn't see much of Sakiko after she passed the Jonin Exams. He was promoted to ANBU Captain, and Sakiko had become a successful and from what he understood she was, rumor had it, the most powerful kunochi since Tsunade. The few times that he did see her outside of missions, she was running through the streets of Konoha training, or with her friends. However, she would always stop and chat with him for a few minutes, catching up and making plans that they both knew the other would have to cancel.

This was one of those meetings. She and Kakashi had decided to meet at training ground 7 to train and just catch up, because they had not had an official conversation in almost two months. As usual Kakashi was late, but by his standards, not too bad; only an hour. He saw Sakiko in a tree lying across one of the branches, her left leg dangling off the edge. She had just returned from a mission the day before yesterday, and like him was scheduled to leave for another one in two day's time. He paused and looked up at the girl, she had changed her attire somewhat. She still wore the black kunochi shorts with fishnets, instead of the chunin flack vest, she now wore a blue tank top, that although baggy on her thin frame, showed a bit more of her barely there figure. Under the blue tank top was a fishnet top, with one long sleeve, the other sleeve cut off and hidden beneath the straps of the tank top. Her weapons pouch was still tied around her left thigh and she still wore black fingerless gloves and black ninja shoes. She wore her headband proudly around her forehead, partially hidden beneath the bangs of her black hair, which was tied back in its usual intricate braid/pony tail. He stopped just below the tree.

"Yo." He stated waving slightly.

She waved half raising her arm in greeting.

Kakashi jumped up into the tree and landed beside her.

She opened her silver eyes and looked up at him before sitting up herself.

"How have you been?" Kakashi inquired.

Sakiko smiled, her smile becoming prettier every time he saw her. "I have been well, I have been busy with missions and training with my friend, Yumi. She is about to go on her first ANBU mission."

Kakashi smiled. "She speaks often about how you helped her to become an ANBU." He thought of the pretty kunochi with long red hair, she reminded him of Kushina. That was probably why he was unable to convince himself to pursue her. She looked and made him think of the Yellow Flash. But the girl was talented in her own right, very efficient in medical jutsu and air based techniques.

Sakiko laughed slightly. "Well how about you?" she inquired.

"I have been well, the ANBU missions are getting harder and longer with the amount of tension that we are having with the Land of Lightening... especially since they demand the body of Hiashi Hyuuga"

Sakiko nodded. "I hope that we can negotiate with them somehow… we cannot afford another war. Or the loss of a member of our village."

Kakashi remained silent. He knew that from a strategist stand point, that giving the Hyuuga to the Raikage was their best option when it came to keeping peace. Sakiko was the type of kunochi who was willing to risk everything to protect her team. As for a war, with the Haiji Clan on their side, they could indeed win any war that was thrown at them. He had heard the stories about Sakiko…she had raised the dead. He wasn't sure if that fascinated him or terrified him. She was dangerous. But that was what made her such a powerful kunochi.

He opened his mouth to question her about his thoughts when a messenger hawk landed on the tree branch and hopped towards Sakiko.

She took the scroll in her hand and broke the seal. He watched her read the scroll, her pretty silver eyes scanning, and hardening towards the end.

"Looks like my mission has been moved to tonight," she said as she closed the scroll and tucked it in the pouch on her thigh. "I need to go pack and debrief with the Hokage." She stood up and stretched her lithe body.

Kakashi stood up too, "Looks like we will have to try to meet another time." He stated.

She turned to face him. "Looks like it. I will see you soon, Kakashi." She replied vanishing in a puff of smoke before Kakashi could reply.

It was about ten o' clock at night as Kakashi wandered towards the monument for fallen ninja. He was unable to sleep, and he figured that talking to Rin and Obioto might do him some good. As he lept from rooftop to rooftop he noticed two figures walking along the sidewalk. He instantly recognized Sakiko's slender form and strange chakara signature. She was wearing a backpack and was obviously headed towards the city gate to meet with her teammates. What surprised him though, was the figure who was walking beside her. Itachi Uchiha was almost as easy to recognize as Sakiko. The boy simply radiated power. Questions instantly began to fly furiously around in his head, like a flock of birds trying to escape a cage. Why were they together? Was there something romantic between the two? Were they going on a mission together?

They stopped across the street and Itachi embraced Sakiko tightly. Kakashi watched as Sakiko froze, but she returned the hug gently. "Be careful."Itachi stated poking her in the forehead.

She rubbed the spot and stuck her tongue out at him. "I'll be back before you know it." She replied.

Kakashi watched this interaction as Sakiko and Itachi parted ways and both disappeared into the darkness.

Kakashi wracked his mind trying to find out the connection between the Uchiha boy and the Haiji girl. They trained together as teammates…so did plenty of other kunochi and ninja. And it was only for a few months. They competed in the chunin exams together in the forest of death…they comforted each other after the death of Akira. They would exchange greetings and Itachi even got her a birthday present. And now he walked her halfway to her meeting point with her teammates. If she had them, he wasn't entirely sure. He pondered as he continued his journey, were they simply friends or were they something more? Then the question as to why he cared so much came into play. Did he care? Was he jealous? No. He definitely wasn't jealous. He was protective. Sakiko had found a place in his heart …that frightened him. He did not let people in.

Two days later he left for a mission with Anko Mitarashi and Kisuke Maboroshi. They were being sent to the Land of Lightening to deliver the body of Hiashi Hyuuga, at least that was what the Raikage believed. He couldn't decide if he liked working with Anko or not. She was loudmouthed, hyperactive, and reckless. Then again her reckless side was what made her a good kunochi. Kakashi just hoped that she would follow his instructions and not be as stubborn as the other Captains said she was. Kakashi was actually surprised when he discovered that Kisuke was on this mission. Kisuke is an amazing ninja, but he had just married his young wife four days ago… but then again, such was the life of a ninja.

"Congratulations once again on the wedding. I am sorry that I could not attend." Kakashi said when the three were donning their gear.

Kisuke smiled. "It's alright, I understand that you were on a mission."

"It was a beautiful wedding." Anko mused.

Kakashi had wanted to discuss the mission, but instead chose to do it when they were on the road. He did not want to ruin his teammates pleasant memories by reminding them that they could die at any moment on this mission. The body of Hiazi Hyuuga was sealed in a scroll at his hip.

He slipped the Hound mask over his face, and looked at his teammates. Anko wore a mask of a snake, while Kisuke wore the mask of a boar. Both stood at attention ready to follow orders. "Let's go." He stated.

The three vanished in a puff of smoke and reappeared at the City Gates before breaking into a run. They ran the entire day through, stopping only when necessary. That night, the three set up a small campsite and after dinner and after a few minutes of idle fireside chat, Anko and Kisuke crawled into their sleeping bags while Kakashi agreed to stay awake for the first watch. He stared at the fire, wondering that Sakiko is doing on her mission. He imagined her looking into a fire the same as he was, knowing her personality he knew that she would prefer to take the first watch…that was if she was traveling in a team.

The mission went by with little problem. Although they had minor hostilities when they arrived at the Land of Lightening, there was even a small squirmish between them and some Lightening nin. However, once they presented the scroll containing the body of Hiazi Hyuuga to the Raikage, they left quickly. Wanted to exit their land before the Raikage discovered that the Byukagan was sealed.

They ran through the night, only stopping to rest as the sun began to rise. All of them stopped breathing hard.

"Was it necessary to run that entire time?" Anko demanded between heavy breaths.

Kisuke nodded in agreement, his hands resting on his knees.

"Did you want to be on the recieiving end of the Raikage's rage when he discovered that the seal prevented them from gaining information of the Byakugan?" Kakashi demanded as he reached for his canteen. Wishing that there was something other than water within the container. He would kill for a bottle of sake. He didn't want to mention it to Anko or Kisuke, but the entire time that they ran, they were being followed.

Anko huffed, but that meant that she agreed with him.

Kisuke ended up nodding in agreement.

"We will stop and rest. We are far enough within our boarders that the Lightening nin wouldn't dare to pursue." Kakashi explained as he leaned back against a tree.

The three rested for a good hour before resuming the journey home at a slow jog.

They arrived at the city gates in the late morning. Waving to the guards the three entered and then vanished in a puff of smoke to the ANBU Headquarters to report their arrival to the Hokage. As he exited the room, he was nearly knocked over by Yumi.

"Oh! I am sorry Kakashi-sempai." She cried out as she regained her balance a blush appearing on her pretty features.

Kakashi rubbed the back of his head and smiled at the girl. "It's not a problem, Yumi-san," he replied. "What has you in such a hurry?"

Now it was Yumi's turn to be awkard. "Well…umm.." she stuttered.

"What is it?" he asked, his eyes suddenly widening, and his thoughts going straight to Sakiko.

"Is Sakiko alright?" he demanded.

"Well… we received a notice from her shinigami… scared the hell out of the Hokage apparently… she-"

"She is requesting back up, and a medic. Apparently her team is too injured to travel and one of them is in critical condition. She says that she can keep him stable for maybe 4 more hours, she doesn't have the chakara control or medic skills to heal…" Itachi stated appearing behind Yumi, causing the poor girl to blush even more.

"We are going to meet them at their coordinates…and bring them home." Yumi explained.

Kakashi immediately turned around and walked into the Hokage's office. "Requesting permission to accompany Yumi and Itachi on the retrival mission."

"Denied." Saratobu replied.

Kakashi stood there dumbfounded. "What do you mean!" he demanded.

"You heard me Hatake, denied. You are tired, and just returned from a mission. Your chakara is too low to make a journey to Iwagakure…I will be amazing if Itachi and Yumi can, it's an extremely long journey to try and make. Not to mention the trauma that you experienced there." Saratobu stated.

Kakashi glared. In his heart he knew that the Hokage was right, his chakara was low and he was not sure if he could handle a trip back… he was still plagued with the nightmare of Obioto being crushed beneath the boulders as the Shringan user shoved him out of the way.

"From your hesitation…I can also tell that you are not ready. Your request is denied. Go home." The old man stated.

Kakashi stormed out of the office slamming the door behind him. He stopped before Itachi and Yumi. "You had better bring her home." He stated before walking out the door.

Kakashi paced around his apartment for the rest of the day and into the night. He was restless, despite his body's demand for rest, he was mentally wide awake. Was Sakiko still alive?

The hours continued to wane on, moving from night to day…Kakashi felt his eyes getting heavier and heavier with each passing hour, but he could not sleep. He was afraid that if he let his eyelids drop for even a moment, he would miss something. He sat on the windowsill in his apartment, a pack of cigarettes that Asuma had left at his apartment in hand. He watched as the city began to awake, the shop owners walking to their shops and the lights suddenly illuminating the surrounding area. The academy students walking to their classes, and the genin teams meeting at the training grounds. As the sun slowly began to rise, Kakashi's eyelids began to drop more and more. He reached into the pack for another cigarette before realizing that he had smoked all of them. He leaned his head back against the wall and felt his tired eyes slowly close.

Right as he was drifting into unconsciousness, he heard a knock on the door.

His eyes snapped open.

Ignoring his muscle's screams of protest, Kakashi stood and walked to his door. He opened it to see Yumi standing before him. She was still dressed in her ANBU uniform, blood decorating the armor. Her mask was on the side of her head and her red hair yanked back in a high ponytail. "Kakashi." She greeted.

Kakashi ran a hand through his unruly hair. "Is Sakiko…" he inquired.

"She is fine. She came in with a broken leg, a few broken ribs, and absolutely no chakara. Although her vitals were low, everything seems fine." Yumi explained. Kakashi could detect the sound of relief in the young woman's voice. It was obvious that Yumi cared deeply for the girl. He wondered what Yumi's relationship with the girl was. She was a few years older than Sakiko, but then again so was he. He wondered if they had gone on missions together as both chunin and jounin, that was probably the most likely scenario.

"How is Itachi?" Kakashi asked.

Yumi laughed slightly. "He is fine, he walked away with barely a scratch. He is with Sakiko now, I just wanted to let you know that she is fine now. We are going to keep her at the hospital for the rest of the day to make sure things are alright, but she should be able to leave this evening."

Kakashi nodded. Relief surging through his exhausted body. "Thank you, Yumi-san. For bringing her back. And for telling me." He stated.

The girl blushed, once again her face the same color as her hair. "You're welcome Kakashi-sempai, get some rest. You look dead on your feet."

Kakashi nodded. "Thank you." He said softly before closing the door. He stumbled to his bedroom and as soon as his body hit his bed, fell into a dreamless sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Hey everyone, this is the latest chapter, I am explaining Sakiko's kekki genkai a little bit here. Just so you know, the knowledge I have about shinigami mostly comes from Death Note, so there will be some similarities between the two. Thanks!

* * *

Kakashi walked through the sliding doors at the hospital just as Sakiko was signing a release form at the nurse's station. He watched her stand up, noting the way that she grasped her ribcage briefly in pain. She looked up and smiled when she saw him. He waved as she walked towards him.

She was dressed in civilian clothes that Yumi had obviously brought her, a pair of capris and a light pink baby doll style dress. Her hair was yanked back in a messy bun. She looked exhausted, and was walking with a slight limp, but she was fine and that was all that mattered.

"You look well." He stated as he fell in step with her.

"I'm glad I look better than I feel, I am so exhausted. I am not allowed to train or go on missions for a week. I think that might be a bit over kill." She stated.

"What do you know about medical jutsus? I think that they might know what they are talking about." Kakashi joked.

She shot him a glare.

He simply chuckled. "I know you hate hospitals just as much as I do. For those reasons especially. You must be hungry…"

"You have no idea," she laughed. "I swear that is why they serve hospital food, to make injured nin sick so that they have to stay in the hospital."

Kakashi smirked beneath his mask. "Well, where do you want to eat?" he asked putting his hands in his pockets.

"Ummm…how about the BBQ place?" she asked.

Kakashi nodded. They walked on in silence, a comfortable silence but Kakashi's questions seemed to hang in the air. He knew that she knew that he wanted to ask her questions. He wanted to know what had happened? How had she managed to save her team? She didn't know medical jutsus.

They reached the restaurant and Sakiko lead them to a booth in the back. Once they placed their orders and the meat had started sizzling… she looked at him.

"OK, go ahead and ask." She stated before taking a sip of her drink.

Kakashi sighed. "What happened?"

"It was a trap. The Daimo somehow found out that we were going to be there." Sakiko explained.

"What were you doing there?" Kakashi asked.

"Classified." Sakiko answered.

"How did you escape?" he inquired.

Sakiko pointed to her silver eyes, indicating the use of the satsuriku. "There were dead buried in the back yard. I summoned them to help us escape. Anko and Torune Aburame, both got hurt. Torune critically, and Anko if left untreated would have died within 24 hours… "

"How did you know?" Kakashi inquired.

Sakiko remained silent.

"Sakiko?" he asked.

"With the satsuriku, I can see things that Shinigami can see… ghost, souls, dead…I can also see how much longer someone has to live."

Kakashi's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

"I can see how much longer a person will live. When Torune was hurt, he only had four hours left to live. And Anko only had 24. I took them and ran as far as I could. I was too weighed down and I feel in a hole, breaking my leg and hurting my ribs. I knew that we were being followed, so I sent Norio to deliver a message to the Hokage."

"But it took Itachi and Yumi over four hours to find you. Then they had to fight." Kakashi was confused.

"We waited for over 7 hours." She explained.

"How did you keep Torune alive?" Kakashi asked.

"I made a deal with Norio. I would give him 2 months of my life, in exchange for Torune to live another hour. I used up my chakara trying to keep Anko and Torune stable. Although I am not sure if that helped."

"You mean, your life just became six months shorter?" he asked.

Sakiko nodded.

"Do you know how long you have to live?" Kakashi demanded.

"No." she replied.

A tense silence fell between the two. Kakashi trying to process the information that he was just given. Sakiko was willing to risk everything to help/save her teammates. Even the ones she didn't know too well. He couldn't help but wonder, how much of her life she had left? How many times had she given months of her life to her teammates?

"I literally watched Torune's life fade before my eyes. It took all I could not to let Norio take his soul…that was why we made the deal. Every person has a certain amount of time to live, but their decisions and the decisions of others change those numbers. We do not know how connected we really are. The moment that we were ambushed, both Anko's and Torune's life expectancy dropped. I saw years fly by when Torune was injured… when Akira died... Every nin I kill, I see their life drain." She explained.

Kakashi remained silent. That was why Akira's death had impacted her so much. She had literally watched him die, watched his life slip away. And the entire time telling him that it was ok and that he was going to make it to the tower. Why hadn't she given her life to Akira?

"Why didn't you…to Akira I mean?" Kakashi found himself asking. He instantly wished that he hadn't… he watched the dark look cross her face.

"I didn't know how to do it then. That bastard Norio didn't tell me…" she replied.

"Norio?" Kakashi asked.

"The name of the shinigami who I am bonded with. Shinigami cannot interact directly with humans this is true… but with the Haiji who agree to be bonded, we can communicate with them. Ask them questions and have them do things for us. They won't interact or help us directly. But the deal is that they can have our souls, if they work with us." Sakiko explained as she took a bite of BBQ.

"So he didn't tell you…when Akira was dying?" Kakashi asked.

"No." Sakiko stated angrily.

Kakashi sighed and reached across the table, placing his hand on top of hers and squeezing lightly. "I'm sorry, Sakiko." He stated.

She smiled sadly. "It's just the way things are right now." She stated softly, letting his hand rest on hers a moment longer before pulling away.


	7. Chapter 7

Hey everybody, once again I am trying to explain Sakiko's kekki genkai. And as I mentioned in the previous chapter, I am using death note as my primary source for shinigami knowledge.

Kakashi awoke at about noon, allowing himself to sleep in for the first time in he didn't know how long. He stretched as he stumbled out of his bedroom, wearing nothing but his boxers and his mask. He grazed the kitchen looking for something, anything to eat. To his displeasure there was absolutely nothing in the kitchen except flour, sugar, and salt. He checked the refrigerator only to find an empty carton of milk and a rotting cucumber. He sighed and ran a hand through his unruly silver hair.

He had just returned from a month long mission last night, and for the first time he felt refreshed after a night's sleep. After the routine ninja check up at the hospital, and reporting to the Hokage about the success of the mission, Kakashi didn't even bother to walk home. Instead he used the last of his chakara to teleport home, undressed, and fell asleep. He sighed suddenly remembering that not only did he need to shower and write a report, but he also needed to go to the market and buy food.

He turned and walked back down the narrow hallway into his bathroom. He turned on the hot water and stripped the few items of clothing he wore off his body. He sighed as the steaming water cleared his sinuses and cleansed his pores. The hot water felt wonderful on his long, lean muscles. He wasn't sure how long he just stood in the waterfall of hot water before he actually washed himself. Once he was clean and managed to convince himself to leave the hot refuge, he exited the shower, dried himself off and walked into his bedroom where he donned his typical attire. He didn't bother to brush his hair, only towel it dry. Once his hitaike was in place, he put his money in his pocket, grabbed his keys, yanked on his shoes and walked out the door.

The streets of Konoha were buzzing with people walking to and fro. The cries of the venders selling their wares rang in the autumn air. It was early September and the air was still warm. He walked along the market, grabbing whatever items met his fancy. He paid the venders and continued walking through the narrow streets. As he was bending down to examine some eggplants, he heard someone calling his name.

"Kakashi!"

The man turned to see a woman with long, black, shoulder-length untamed hair, and scarlet eyes. She wore make-up consisting of red lipstick and purple eye shadow. She was dressed in a red mesh armor blouse with only the right sleeve visible. Over this she wore broader bandages with a pattern on it similar to those of rose thorns. Her hands and upper thighs are also wrapped in bandages. He instantly recognized her as Kurenai Yuhi.

"Kurenai," He greets. He hadn't seen the woman in a while, she was an advanced level chunin at this time. "Are you looking for Asuma?" he had noticed the way that the two had been flirting. He knew that Kurenai was schedule to take the jonin exams soon as well, wanting to work with a genin team. She was a caring, but powerful woman who seemed to have a way with adolescents.

The woman blushed at that comment. "Actually, I was looking for Sakiko. Have you seen her?"

Kakashi paused and tried to remember the last time that he had seen the girl. "Not in a while, I have been away on a mission…" he trailed off. Usually Sakiko, along with Asuma, and he hated to admit Gai, were the first people he contacted when he returned from a mission.

Kakashi noticed the slightly older woman observing him, she seemed to have a knowing look in her red eye. He wondered what she was thinking and suddenly envied the Yamanaka clan for their mind based techniques.

"Today is your first day back?" she inquired.

Kakashi found himself nodding in response.

"If she is not on a mission, she will most likely be found at the Haiji Compound, training ground 7, in a tree with her nose in a book, or at the Uchiha Compound with Sasuke and Itachi." Kakashi explained.

Kurenai nodded. "Thank you, I was going to meet her here at the market, but she must have lost track of time and is at one of those locations…her sense of time is similar to yours…always late."

Kakashi chuckled. "Only if she has found a good book, or is rescuing a cat from a tree. She has a thing for cats."

"Speak of the devil." Kurenai stated looking over his shoulder.

Kakashi turned to see Sakiko wave at Kurenai before walking towards them. Beside her was Itachi.

"Kakashi!" she greeted happily, "I am glad that you are back!"

Kakashi blushed at the comment, happy that his mask covered his face.

"Sakiko, Itachi." He greeted after exchanging a questioning look at Sakiko. She made a face at him in response.

"Sorry, Kurenai… I ran into this one over here," she nudged Itachi. "And he invited himself along."

Kurenai rolled her eyes. "Well we should get started."

"Kakashi would you like to join us? I have to find an apartment." Sakiko asked.

Kakashi sighed. "I can't. I have to write a mission report and finish shopping." He explained.

Sakiko smirked. "Trust me I would rather be doing that…trying to find an apartment is like trying to find a new life…I will stop by later." She said.

Kakashi couldn't help but notice Itachi glance briefly at the girl standing next to him. So Itachi did have feelings for the necromancer.

They turned to leave, waving and exchanging good byes.

Kakashi heard a knock on his window at about ten o' clock. He sighed and stood up to let the Haiji girl in.

"What's wrong with the door?" he asked.

"Pssh, like you use yours." she replied as she stepped into his apartment.

"How did house hunting go?" he asked.

She smiled. "Actually I am four floors above you."

Kakashi smiled. He was actually really glad that she had decided to move into his same building.

"Why did you move out of the compound?" he asked.

"I was kicked out." She stated.

"What?" Kakashi demanded leading her into the living room to sit on the sofa.

"Well, asked to leave…The Haiji typically do not become ninja, at least not by choice. We signed a treaty with the 1st Hokage that we would be on non-active duty…only if there was a war, would we fight. You know why. My clan does not believe in using our abilities to cause death, death is supposed to be something natural, a way to celebrate life… we deliver messages, we help the dead pass on, we work as medics, and we exorcise evil demons."

"They why did you become a ninja?" Kakashi inquired.

"Because I didn't want to sit back and wait for my home to be attacked again…" she trailed off.

"Why else?" Kakashi found himself asking, knowing somehow that there was another reason.

"Because I made a deal with a shinigami."

"Why?"

Sakiko sighed. "When I was little, my mother got seriously injured when the Kyuubi attacked. Obviously our clan was recruited by the 4th to help seal the demon, and she was one of the most powerful exrocists in our clan. But something went wrong and she was critically injured. My father carried her back to our home and laid her on her bed. She was about to die, all of us could tell…" Sakiko trailed off.

Kakashi waited patiently and silently, he would give the girl all the time she needed.

"When I saw the shinigami coming to take my mother's soul, I made an agreement with him that he could have my soul…if he let my mother live. Not only would he get a Haiji soul, but he would have means of living on Earth by living through me."

Kakashi felt himself shiver, so the shinigami lived inside of her, it was like the Akamichi clan. And that explained why Sakiko had a slight air of death about her.

"Shinigami cannot interact directly with humans. But if they bond with a Haiji, they have the opportunity to collect as many souls as their want due to our kekki genkai. However, if I ask him a question or request his help, he as to help me in exchange. Although as you can tell, bargains tend to end with me allowing him to shorten my life."

"Why does he want your soul so badly?" Kakashi demanded, he was suddenly terrified for the girl. It was like she had no care about her own life.

"Haiji souls are like fine art. Something that shows a shinigami's rank and power." Sakiko replied.

A silent once again fell between the two.

"Sakiko… I wish that you wouldn't give up your life so easily." Kakashi found himself stating.

"I am a ninja Kakashi, I will do whatever it takes to protect my teammates and complete the mission. If that includes giving up my life for the life of a teammate, then I will do so." Sakiko replied.

Once again Kakashi sighed. Sakiko really was one of a kind.

"The Hokage requested to have me join the ANBU." Sakiko said obviously trying to change the subject, but Kakashi suddenly found this topic just as terrifying as the idea of the shinigami taking her life.

"Are you going to join?" Kakashi asked.

"Of course!" she stated.

Kakashi was at a loss for words.

"What's wrong?" she asked, noticing his expression of shock and disappointment.

Kakashi sighed. "I don't want you to join." He stated.

She looked at him shocked. "What do you mean you don't want me to join?" she demanded.

"Sakiko, it's dangerous, do you know the average life expectancy of an ANBU?" he asked.

"You joined when you were 13, I am almost 14, and Itachi is already a captain." Sakiko stated her voice was rising.

Kakashi glared at her. "Do you even know the risks involved?" he demanded, his tone rising to match her own.

"Obviously I know the risks!" she was standing now.

"You shouldn't join, Sakiko!" Kakashi was almost yelling at her, standing and now towering over her. "Do you know what enemy ninja do to kunochi? They violate them in the worse way possible, if they let them live at all!"

"I know the risks, Kakashi!" Sakiko screamed turning away from him.

"Obviously you don't, Sakiko!" Kakashi yelled back.

"I saw my teammate die when I was 10, I have watched the life drain from other ninja. I have seen Norio take the lives of both civilians and ninja alike! I know what death looks like!" she cried out turning back to him.

"You don't understand!" Kakashi cried out.

"Kakashi, why do you not want me to do this!" she screamed back shoving him away from her.

Kakashi took a step back and glared at the girl. She was breathing hard and her face was flushed. Anger seemed to radiate from her, and she had never looked more beautiful. He could feel the passion and determination, an aura floating around her.

"Because I don't want to loose you." He said his voice barely above a whisper.

Her anger seemed to dissipate. Her intense silver eyes softened, and her fist unclenched. "Y-you what?" she asked.

"I don't want to lose you, Sakiko." He repeated a bit louder.

"K-Kakashi." She said his name softly, her stance softening.

"You are someone important to me, Sakiko. If I lost you…" he didn't have a chance to finish when she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

Kakashi's arms instantly went around her, one around her tiny waist, the other the back of her head holding her tightly against him. He rested his cheek atop her head, and breathed in her distinct scent of black orchid; just like her dark and beautiful.

"Kakashi," she whispered against him, although she made no move to leave his embrace. "Nothing will happen."

He didn't reply just squeezed tighter. He knew that she was lying and he knew that she knew. The life of an ANBU was short and dangerous, that of a female ANBU even shorter. He sighed, once again from a tactical point, having Sakiko as an ANBU was a brilliant plan on the Hokage's part. Kakashi felt resentment for the old man crawl through his mind. He was using the girl. But she as a ninja, something that the village used to protect it. All ninja were. They were pawns, property of the village that were used for politics. By showing the other nations that Sakiko was an ANBU, the Hokage was showing his power.

"You aren't going to change your mind are you?" he whispered into her hair after an indeterminate amount of time.

She shook her head and pulled back out of his embrace. "I'm sorry, Kakashi." She stated softly.

Kakashi sighed and ran a hand through his unruly silver hair, and looked at the girl standing before him. The look of determination was back in her eyes, but he also noticed the look of sorrow. He instantly knew that it was because of his dislike of her decision.

He stepped forward and put his hands on her thin shoulders. "Sakiko, despite my obvious dislike of your decision…I promise that I will be there for you and support you in every way that I can."

She smiled at him then and hugged him again, this time a shorter one. And stepped back to a comfortable distance between the two.

"Thank you, Kakashi. You have no idea how much that means to me." She replied.

Kakashi felt a blush so dark and large form, he hoped that his mask actually hid it. However, he could not hide the yawn that escaped.

"You need to get some rest, Kakashi. A month long mission takes time to recover from." She said chuckling slightly.

Kakashi rubbed the back of his head awkwardly and slightly embarrassed. "Thanks." He replied.

She smiled and headed towards the window, when she was half way out, she turned to him and smiled brightly.

"Thanks Kakashi."


	8. Chapter 8

Kakashi walked into the Hokage's tower and knocked on the door. Seconds later, Sakiko appeared next to him. He was startled to see her, from what he knew she didn't have any missions.

"Kakashi, hi I wasn't expecting to see you amongst the living for at least another two hours." She teased, knowing all too well that the Copy nin tended to sleep in rather late when he had the day off.

He opened his mouth, about to ask the girl what she was doing here when the Hokage opened the door, "I am sorry to interrupt… but I have that file you wanted." Kakashi explained, holding the manila envelope loosely in his hands.

The Hokage nodded. "Sakiko, right on time. Kakashi I am glad that you are here. Please come in" Kakashi and Sakiko exchanged looks before both entered the office and stood before the Hokage. The smell of tobacco and ink surrounded them as the door shut, Kakashi tried hard not to wrinkle his sensitive nose. It was raining outside, so the windows were closed, sealing the smells within the spacious office, there as a slight haze from the smoke.

"As you are well aware, the ANBU trials are in a week. Sakiko is planning on competing." The old man explained taking his pipe from between his teeth.

Kakashi felt Sakiko stiffen next to him. He looked down at her, his eyes narrowing. She wasn't going to tell him.

"I want you to be involved… because you can explain to the other ANBU about her, ahem, abilities."

"No." Kakashi stated. He felt Sakiko relax next to him, and considered changing his mind. He could convince at least one or two other ANBU not to let her pass, but he also knew that she was the favorite amongst the candidates.

The Hokage looked at the man from beneath his hat, confusion and a bit of anger etched on his wrinkled face.

"I do not support Sakiko's decision to participate in the ANBU exams, and I will not be involved. You and I both know that she could just say that she wanted to be an ANBU and you would just give her a mask right now if you didn't have to follow protocol." Kakashi's voice was beginning to rise at the end of his statement, he felt Sakiko's fingers dig into his arm, begging him to stop. That just made him angrier and he shook his arm from her grasp.

"I will not participate, give someone else the responsibility." Kakashi stated before vanishing in a puff of smoke, not bothering to have the to bow to the Hokage.

He reappeared in the training grounds, and began beating his fist against one of the training mats hanging on the tree behind him. He ignored the bits of water splashing against his face, the way that his gloves were beginning to soak, knowing that he would have bloody blisters soon. How could she do that? How could she go and join the ANBU after what he had just said to her that night? She had already been disowned by her clan…what else was she trying to do.

"Reckless" he breathed.

That was the best word to describe Sakiko. She was intelligent, powerful, caring, brave, and beautiful. But she was reckless, throwing herself into situations that she wasn't prepared for. Situations that could easily kill her, just to save the ones she loved. She was not a tactician, although she obviously understood battle tactics. She had been against giving the body of Haizi Hyuuga to the Raikage in the first place, insisting that there must be an alternative way, even though there wasn't. She was reckless. She didn't have any sense of self preservation…she just threw herself out there. He continued hitting the target. No wonder ninja rule number twenty three existed. It was made to keep emotions like the ones Sakiko carried around so much at bay. She let her emotions get in the way too much, they caused her to make reckless and stupid decisions. It was because of that shinigami that she had stayed alive this long, and the thing had been trying to kill her since she was a child.

He didn't realize how much emotions dulled the senses until the Itachi Uchiha spoke.

"Sakiko told you that she was joining the ANBU too?" Itachi inquired knowingly. Kakashi mentally kicked himself for not noticing the Uchiha boy.

Kakashi turned to boy, "Not until the Hokage asked me to come in and explain her jutsu." He explained wiping the sweat from the visible parts of his face.

Itachi nodded. "The same thing happened to me." He paused. "I don't want her to be an ANBU. Is that wrong? "

Kakashi found himself relating to the young shinobi standing before him. He and the Uchiha protégé had a lot in common. They were both geniuses by their own right; they had both graduated from the academy at a ridiculously young age, both became chunin and ANBU members at a young age. And both of them had the shiringan…although Itachi had an obvious advantage. Itachi was certainly more open than Kakashi, the boy although stoic was kind and gentle, sociable (at least when Sakiko was around), and well known. While he too was well known and liked within the village, Kakashi was cordial, but he didn't allow himself to be open with others, too many people he cared for had died.

Kakashi sighed. "I don't either."

"I just care about her. Even though we were only on the same genin team for about three months, I got to know her well." He chucked a bit then. "Actually I hated her…when we first met."

Kakashi nodded.

"She and I fought like cats and dogs. Her rash behavior had led to multiple disagreements. I was tactful and she was just…" he paused.

"Reckless?" Kakashi offered.

The other boy nodded.

Kakashi smiled beneath his mask. Maybe he and the Uchiha were more similar than not.

"Sakiko and Akira became close the day they met. For some reason the aura of death that surrounded Sakiko did not frighten Akira the same way that it did others. I never really understood that. Her aura terrified me…how could someone so kind and charismatic have such an aura to them? She confused me, she was…is an enigma. Like one of those beautiful flowers that draw you closer and closer until you realize too late that they are poisonous."

Kakashi found himself nodding in agreement. He too had wondered how it was possible that Sakiko had made friends so easily despite her deadly aura. Was it because ninja had been taught that death was unavoidable? That they might as well embrace it? He had always noticed the wary look in the eye of the civilians when they saw her. Not many Haiji were greeted that way…some were priest and priestess, who were as revered as the Hokage, members of the clan were always respected. Sakiko, although respected, was respected mostly through a fear that she didn't know she entailed. She was the most deadly weapon that Konoha had. A bomb, that was under command of the Hokage.

"She doesn't know the effect that she has on others." Kakashi finally stated softly.

Itachi looked at the man through his beautiful obsidian eyes. "No…she doesn't."

"When did you and Sakiko become friends?" Kakashi found himself asking.

Itachi looked at the other shringan user, but instead of questioning him like Kakashi was expecting, Itachi sighed and spoke.

"We were on a mission in the Land of Snow, it was long term and Sakiko had grown close to a family in the village. The shogun that we were pursuing discovered Sakiko's affection for the family and burned down the home, locking the family inside." Itachi sighed.

"A family of civilians?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes. It took every ounce of strength that Akira and I had to keep her from running into the burning building. She didn't stop fighting until she saw her shinigami take the souls, then she collapsed to the ground. That night the shogun and his entire entourage were found dead in their beds…" Itachi finished.

"She killed them." Kakashi stated.

Itachi nodded. "She had her shinigami do it. You can guess it was more than happy to oblige." The boy finished sardonically.

"You still haven't answered my question." Kakashi stated.

Itachi sighed. "Sensai sent me to go talk to her. We spent that entire night talking. From there we began to work better as a team. Then we took the chunin exams together…with Akira. We have grown closer, especially since Sasuke took such a liking to her."

The blush that graced Itachi's features, solidified Kakashi's belief, Itachi was indeed in love with Sakiko.

Upon that realization, Kakashi wasn't sure how to respond. He felt a multitude of emotions flood through him, like a dam unleashed, washing torrents of water over an unsuspecting village. He wasn't sure how he felt learning this about the Uchiha boy.

"You love her." Kakashi stated, saying the thought that both men had.

Itachi sighed. "I don't know…I think I do." He replied.

Kakashi nodded, love was an emotion that ninja both craved and feared. Loving met being vulnerable, something that no ninja could do. To be a ninja also met putting those that you loved in harm's way. Sometimes it was impossible to protect them, Sakiko of all people had learned that. Itachi felt the same way about his brother, Sasuke. The Uchiha protégé would do anything for his brother, sometimes Kakashi wondered if he was even willing to kill for him.

"Sakiko is someone worth caring for. Someone special." Kakashi stated.

The Uchiha boy looked up at the Copy Nin, he opened his mouth to say something, but Kakashi had had enough. Hearing of the boy's love for Sakiko had allowed emotions that he didn't want to run free, escape his mask of indifference. He performed the Rabbit sign, and vanished in a puff of smoke.


	9. Chapter 9

Kakashi bounded silently across the wasteland that was the Land of Wind, behind him were Sakiko and Tsume, a member of the Inuzuka clan; and although he could not hear their footsteps as they ran behind him, he could feel the deadly aura of the shinigami the resided within Sakiko and smell Tsume's musky scent. They had been traveling for nearly 20 hours already, he knew that all three of them were dehydrated from their day running through the aired desert past, Suna and towards Ishigakure. It was true that there was an easier route from Konoha and through Amegakure, but their sources said that there would be more risk of being spotted and recognized as Konoha ANBU. Although after nearly 8 hours of running across literal barren plains with no place for cover at all, Kakashi wondered if it would be easier to spot a Konoha Nin out in the open. However, this question was easily answered due to the fact that since they had left Suna, they had seen maybe 3 people wandering through the desert.

He stopped when he noticed a small cluster of vegetation, about two kilometers away. Sakiko her tiger mask hiding her face, paused and looked at his hound mask covered face.

"We will camp there tonight." He whispered.

"No, we need to keep going." Sakiko hissed back.

"Sakiko, if you do not rest at this oasis, then this whole mission that you organized will be in vain" Kakashi stated.

"Yumi, could be dead by now! I can't let that happen! She is my best friend." She exclaimed in a harsh whisper.

"A friend, who needs you, and if she is still alive, you need to be ready for a fight not exhausted from running across the desert with 2 hours of sleep." He stated simply.

"Hound…" she began using his code name.

"That's an order." He stated simply before he continued running forwards.

Wolf placed a comforting hand on Sakiko's shoulder as Kakashi moved past.

He heard the footsteps of Wolf immediately follow, and not even a beat later, Sakiko's aura surrounded him once again. He lost himself in his thoughts during that last run to the oasis.

_Flashback:_

Kakashi ignored the insistent knocking on his door and instead focused all his attention on the weapons that he was currently polishing. He had polished his katana, but he still had about ten more kunai before he would finish. "Kakashi!" Sakiko screamed again.

"Go away!" he yelled back. He didn't want to see Sakiko yet, she had been an ANBU for almost two months now, and he still resented her for it.

Meanwhile, Sakiko's best friend Yumi, the pretty red head who blushed every time he or Itachi was near, was beyond excited to have her best friend in the ANBU.

Yumi and Sakiko worked flawlessly together, both in and out of the field. They were at that point in their friendship where they could basically read each other's thoughts, something that was beyond effective in the field.

He and Yumi would pass each other frequently in his apartment building since Sakiko lived in the same building. The three of them spent a good bit of time together, and sometimes when Kakashi would go to Sakiko's, Yumi was there already or just leaving as he was arriving (vice versa happened as well).

"Kakashi" his thoughts were interrupted by Sakiko's screams.

"Go away!" he finally screamed back.

"If you don't open this gods forsaken door, I will personally break it down and find a demon that will haunt you for the rest of your life!"

Kakashi sighed. He knew all too well that she would too. Knowing his luck she would remove the seal from Naruto and sick the Kyuubi on him. If her mother could put on the seal, he didn't doubt that Sakiko could remove it.

"Hold on." He muttered. He stood up, kunai in hand…just in case, and opened the door.

"What." He demanded.

She paused and looked up at him. She looked exhausted, like she hadn't slept in days, the dark circles around her eyes confirmed it. "I need your help." She whispered.

Kakashi sighed. She needed his help and of course he would help her. He always would and in the back of his mind a little voice was screaming that she would do that same for him.

"What is it?" he finally asked, stepping aside to let her into his apartment.

"Yumi is missing." She stated.

"Missions sometimes take longer than expected." He said in response.

"She was supposed to be back 10 days ago, the five day grace period is up. She's missing." Sakiko stated.

"And you want to organize a mission to find her." He finished her thought.

She nodded. "You are the best tracker, and my best friend. I need you."

_End flashback_

Tsume Inuzuka was brought for the same reason, he was a good tracker, relying on his nose and ears to pick up the tiniest scents and details to their surroundings. Although Kakashi's nose did rival the Inuzuka's, Tsume's animal instincts could pick up on the presence and sounds of everything that surrounded him.

They stopped in the Oasis and set up camp. They didn't start a fire for the fear of it being spotted in the immense expanse of sand and desert. Instead they used a common jutzu to help their sight in the dark. Sakiko and Tsume put up the shelter, while Kakashi took the first watch and took the food rations out of his bag.

The two joined him shortly after and the three ate their meal in silence. "Tomorrow we will reach the town of Ryu to see if we can find her. Her mission took her over there to investigate a clan that sounds like they could be a threat to Konoha." Kakashi explained breaking the silence.

"What do we know about this clan?" Tsume inquired.

"This clan is said to be descendants from Dragons, and they recently took over the town, killing all nin within the immediate vicinity and obviously renamed the town in their name. Rumor has it that with this clan and their new jutzu, they could easily over throw the land of Wind, due to their current unrest, and attack Konoha."Kakashi replied.

Sakiko remained silent, nibbling on one of her energy bar rations. Kakashi noted that it was one of the few things that she had eaten in this 20 hour period.

"Get some sleep, Tiger." He stated softly.

She looked at him and nodded before standing and walking to the small shelter.

"She is beyond the point of exhaustion." Tsume noted.

"I know. It's just her raw emotion that is driving her forward now…" Kakashi stated staring at the tent.

"Don't you think that it's a liability?" Tsume inquired.

"Of course I do."

"Then why take her?"

"I worry about what she would do if she couldn't go on this mission."

Tsume nodded in understanding.

After a brief silence, Tsume spoke again.

"What is your relationship with her?" he asked softly, his voice so soft that Kakashi could barely hear him.

Kakashi hesitated. He wasn't sure how this conversation could end up going, he especially didn't want Sakiko to hear him. Odds were she wasn't asleep.

"She's someone who is precious to me." Kakashi replied softly.

Tsume nodded, saying that he would take watch.

They were running through the woods now, and Kakashi couldn't help the feeling of relief and familiarity of leaping from tree to tree. They were about 15 kilometers from Ryu, and he could feel the tension emitting from Sakiko.

"Hound." Tsume's voice broke the silence.

Kakashi and Sakiko stopped and looked at the Inuzuka.

"I smell her." He stated.

Kakashi risked a glance at Sakiko, only to notice how her entire body turned rigid.

"Lead the way." He stated.

Tsume nodded and took off headed South.

They stepped through a clearing, and found Yumi's body.

She was lying on the ground, her pretty blue eyes wide and staring. She was naked and covered in blood and bruises, indicating that she was tortured in the worst way that a woman could be.

"She's still alive!" Tsume cried out.

Sakiko stepped into the clearing. "No…she isn't." she stated.

"How do you know?" Tsume demanded stepping forward and placing his fingers on Yumi's neck.

"Because the Shinigami just took her soul."

Kakashi looked over at Sakiko, and saw her pretty silver eyes glow blue for a split second before returning to their natural color. Although he couldn't see her face, Kakashi noticed Sakiko's posture. Her body was relaxed and neutral, the only indicator that she was effected by seeing her best friend dead on the ground was the small trickle of blood leaking from between her fingertips. For a kunochi that was driven by pure emotion, she could at least hide it well.

Tsume stepped back, also confirming that the girl was dead.

"Tiger, do you think that you could…" he trailed off.

She looked over at him, knowing exactly what he was suggesting. She nodded and began to use the hand signs to activate the satsuriku. Her pretty silver eyes changed their color from silver to midnight blue. She walked over to Yumi's body and placed her fingertips on the girl's forehead, lips, and heart.

Yumi responded with a gasping breath. "Sakiko?" she asked.

The girl nodded in response. "Yumi, who did this to you?"

"Her name is Kimiko, and her brother Kenji. They are members of the Ryu clan…their jutzu are terrifying…Sakiko, they can raise demons… I don't know how they do it."

Sakiko sighed… "They sold their souls to demons." Sakiko stated.

Yumi coughed and began crying out in pain. "Sakiko…I need you to let me pass on." She begged.

Sakiko nodded. "I'll miss you." She whispered as she performed the hand signs to release the jutsu.

"What was that, I thought that you could raise the dead to do your bidding?" Tsume demanded.

"There are two different ways to raise the dead…one is to speak to them, the other is to basically raise zombies. When you raise them to speak to them, sometimes their wounds…like Yumi's are too painful and the memories too traumatic for them to be able to help you." Sakiko explained.

Kakashi sighed. "I'm sorry, Tiger." He stated using her code name.

"I'm going to kill them." She stood up and her chakara suddenly changed.

"No! We don't know anything about them yet, we need to do more research and do some more observations before we can do anything. Don't let your emotions get in the way!" Kakashi demanded.

She crossed her arms over her chest, she wasn't afraid to challenge him.

"That's an order." He finished.

She turned away, "You know what to do with the body."

Kakashi and Tsume watched as she walked away. He didn't mind that she gave the order, they both knew what to do with Yumi's body. Tsume stepped forward and placed the seals on her forehead, eyes, and mouth; thus preventing any enemy nin from stealing the secrets of the ANBU in Konoha.

Kakashi preformed the hand signs that all ANBU must know, and a blaze of fire instantly engulfed Yumi's body. The creamation didn't take long, not with these flames. Tsume then removed a scroll from his belt and sealed Yumi's ashes within the scroll.

Every ANBU's ashes were sealed within scrolls to take back to their families, to be buried where they see fit.

The two ninja exchanged glances before heading in the direction that Yumi had walked. When the three were reunited, they began their trek back to Konoha.


	10. Chapter 10

So the ending is a little cliché, but I think that it just fits with the story.

Kakashi was worried.

He hadn't seen Sakiko since Yumi's funeral was held a week ago. He had tried knocking on her door several times, but each time he was denied in some way or another, he could not get into her apartment, the barriers that she had put up were too strong, even for him.

Itachi had been trying too, Kakashi had seen the boy ascend the stairs, on to descend moments later, his shiringan flashing, as if trying to break a genjutsu. But Kakashi knew that it wasn't a genjutsu, it was the minor and harmless ghost and demons resided in Sakiko's small apartment.

He remembered the first time he had entered the apartment he had seen a cat walking on its hind legs and his shoes had disappeared when he was trying to leave a few hours later. So he assumed that it was the demons that were casting their magic to keep anyone from entering the apartment.

But enough was enough, he had to make sure that she was ok.

He walked up the stairs to her apartment and knocked loudly on the door.

"Sakiko!" he yelled.

His hand slammed on the door repeatedly.

"Go away." A voice hissed from the other side.

"Not until I know that Sakiko is alright." He replied glaring at the door as he took a few steps back.

An orange tabby walked on her two long legs through the door.

"Orenji" Kakashi greeted. He knew that he should be bowing and showing respect to the bakeneko, but he was beyond irritated with her and the other demons that lived with Sakiko.

Orenji narrowed her yellow eyes and her two orange tails switched back and forth in irritation.

"What do you want, Kakashi?" she demanded.

"I want to speak to Sakiko." He replied.

"She does not wish to speak to anyone. Now leave before I decide to eat you." Orenji stated licking her paw.

"I just want to know if she is alright." Kakashi stated, drawing a kunai.

"Obviously she isn't OK." Akane, the kitsune stated as he too walked through the closed door and sat down next to Orenji.

"You know what I mean." Kakashi stated crossing his arms over his chest.

"Put that weapon away, there is no need for hostilities. We are merely doing what Sakiko wishes." Orenji purred.

Kakashi pulled his hand out of his weapon holster and crossed his arms over his chest. "I need to see Sakiko." He stated.

Orenji narrowed her eyes at him once again.

"I think we should let him in" Akane stated wrapping his long fox tail around his legs.

Orenji turned her glare at him, "If Sakiko gets angry, it is your fault."

Akane nodded and turned before walking through the still closed door.

Orenji sighed and wrapped her two tails over her paws, she closed her eyes and howled loudly before opening them and turning towards the door. "You may enter now, scarecrow."

Kakashi rolled his eyes, but turned the knob on the door and walked inside.

He saw Sakiko sitting on the floor, a pile of photographs scattered around her, and a photo album in her lap. He didn't say a word; instead he walked across the room, carefully stepping over the photographs. He sat down next to the girl slowly so that their shoulders and legs were touching, then wrapped an arm around her narrow shoulders.

"Kakashi?" she whispered lift her face from the photo album and looking up at him. In her lap was a picture of Yumi and her, smiling brightly at the camera, ice cream cones in their hands.

"I'm here." He replied just as softly, gently removing the photo album from her lap and placing it softly on the ground.

Her arms went around him instantly, and he wrapped his arms around her tightly, burrying his face in her hair and feeling her body shake as she cried into his chest.

He stroked her hair softly, "It's OK, it's going to be OK." He looked down at the photo album and noticed that the next picture was one of him, Yumi, and Sakiko. The two girls were holding him in their arms, his arm over each of their shoulders, and each of them holding one of his legs. He looked irritated, while the two girls had smirks on their faces, preparing to throw him into the lake.

"It's going to be OK." He whispered, feeling tears well up in his own eyes as he held Sakiko tightly.

She never responded, instead gripped his vest as her tears stained it, and her body shook from the ragged breaths she took.

He just closed his eyes and held her while she gripped him like he was the only thing holding her together.

He awoke a few hours later, Sakiko still in his arms. He couldn't help the small smile that appeared beneath his mask.

He looked down at her beautiful face, and gently stroked the strands of hair from her face. Her breathing was deep and even, her grip on his vest loosened. Her head resting on his chest, lulled to sleep by his steady heart beat.

He gently lifted her into his arms and took her to her bedroom. He gently laid her down on the bed and pulled the covers over her body. He was about to pull away when he felt her hand wrap around his wrist.

"Please, don't leave." She whispered looking up at him with sleepy eyes, surrounded by dark circles. She had lost weight, her cheek bones more prominent, the hand that gripped his wrist was weak and shaking slightly.

He nodded and slipped off his shoes and vest before climbing into the bed beside her.

She linked her fingers through his as he pulled her into his embrace.

He knew that his comfort would only help her temporarily. That tomorrow, she would still be heartbroken and unable to eat, sleep, or do the things that she loved. He knew that tomorrow, Itachi would come to her and comfort her the same way that he did. He knew that tomorrow, she would be blinded by revenge, that she would begin to research and learn everything she possibly could about the Ryu clan.

But right now, he was holding her close. Right now he was her anchor, and he realized that she was his. He held her tightly and lightly pressed his covered lips to her cheek and closed his eyes once again.


	11. Chapter 11

Kakashi woke the next morning alone in Sakiko's bed.

He wasn't surprised that she was gone; he would have been more shocked if she was still sleeping. Sakiko was an early riser, despite the fact that she tended to stay up into the wee hours of the morning.

He sighed and sat up, thinking about where she would be. She was probably at the training grounds, or at the archives trying to learn all she could about the Ryu clan.

He voted for the latter, and had an inner debate with himself trying to determine if he should go and help her, or if he should give her the space that she thought she needed. He knew that Sakiko probably should not be alone right now; she needed to surround herself with her peers and those who cared about her.

But who was he kidding, he never did that. Not when his father committed suicide. Not when Obioto died. Not when his sensai died. Not when he killed Rin.

He slid off of the bed and grabbing his shoes walked out the door before vanishing in a puff of smoke and reappearing in his living room.

The answer to his inner debate was already in his apartment, a messenger hawk was waiting patiently on his windowsill, a scroll attached to its leg.

He walked to the window and slid it open, the hawk stepped in and stretched out his leg, looking up at Kakashi expectantly.

He took the scroll and looked at its contents. "A mission with Itachi, this could be interesting." He muttered to himself before he walked into his bedroom to change clothes.

He arrived at the Hokage's office only to find that Itachi and Anko were already there. Both in full ANBU attire, Anko's Viper mask and Itachi's Weasel mask attached to their hips.

"Where is Sakiko?" Anko asked puzzled.

"She is going on the mission?" Itachi and Kakashi demanded at the same time. The two looked at one another, but both understood the other's thoughts. Sakiko was a liability right now, she was not emotionally stable.

"Lord Hokage…" Kakashi began.

"She is in no condition to be on a mission right now." Itachi finished.

The Hokage sighed. "She is the only other kunochi that fits the profile. With Yumi's death we lost one of our best undercover agents. Anko has experience and is quite successful, but she cannot complete the second phase of the mission alone."

Itachi put the pieces together before Kakashi. "You are sending her on an information-retrieval mission, exploiting her body. Her and Anko."

Kakashi felt his face flush with anger.

"Lord Hokage," Anko began finally understanding the conversation. "Maybe we should not take her. I have experience, and I can handle myself. Or Kurenai?"

"It is true, that Kureani is a talented kunochi when it comes to these types of missions. But she is no ANBU, her genjutsu is powerful, one of the best that I have seen. But she is not as skilled as Sakiko" The Hokage replied.

Or as pretty. Kakashi thought in his head.

"With all do respect Lord Hokage, Sakiko doesn't have any experience in this field," Itachi began. "Kurenai would be a better option."

The Hokage opened his mouth to respond, but a puff of smoke announced Sakiko's arrival. She looked better, the dark circles under her eyes had faded and her hair was clean, yanked back in its usual braid/pony tail. She was dressed in her ANBU uniform, her porcelain mask at her hip.

"I am ready for this mission." She had her arms crossed over her body, and looked back at her three companions, daring one of them to challenge her.

All three remained silent, although Kakashi noticed that Itachi was glaring daggers at her.

"Your mission will involve three phases. Phase one, you will all be undercover. Itachi and Kakashi you are posing as elite business men, Sakiko and Anko you are the merchandise. You will be sold to the main house as concubines of the Ryu Clan and try to find information. Phase two, both of you will stay in the house for 3 days and gather all the intel you can. Phase three, Kakashi and Itachi will assist in an escape."

The four stared at the Hokage. Kakashi knew that Sakiko and Anko would be exploiting their bodies, but the looking on Anko's face showed disgust and horror.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me." She stated.

Sakiko's silver eyes were wide, and Kakashi noticed the slight shaking of her left hand. Itachi must have noticed it because he linked his fingers through hers tightly.

"This mission is S-Class and non-optional." Smoke drifted out of the Hokage's nose. He looked at the four ninja before him, expecting them to question his judgment.

"When do we leave?" Itachi finally asked.

"In two days." The Hokage answered.

All four members bowed and vanished in a puff of smoke.

When Kakashi reappeared in his apartment, he threw his porecelin mask across the room where it landed on his couch, staring back at him mockingly. He growled and walked back into his closet to chance out of his ANBU uniform.

"I need a drink." He muttered to himself once he had changed out of his ANBU uniform and was now walking down the street towards the closest sake bar. He took a seat at the bar and ordered the first item that he saw on the menu. He didn't really care what he got this time around, he just needed something strong…or multiple things strong he didn't really care at this point.

"You too, huh?" a voice stated from his left.

He turned to see Anko sitting next to him. Her maroon hair in its usual pony tail, and her eyes mischevious as always.

"Of all the missions. This is the one that we are being sent on." Kakashi mumbled as he traced his middle finger along the rim of the glass.

"I know. I did not expect Sakiko to be involved nor Itachi." Anko replied.

"Why?" Kakashi inquired.

"You and I both know that Sakiko has never been on a mission like this. She has never been in a position where she had to seduce a man before,"

Kakashi nodded, he knew that kunochi were typically taught the basics. The basics being how to dress, act helpless, flirt. He also knew that these were the places that Sakiko had been the weakest when she graduated from the academy.

"Then again, with the way Itachi looks at Sakiko…you might think otherwise." Anko added as an afterthought, giggling before taking a sip of her beverage.

Kakashi took this moment to take a sip of his, pretending not to have heard the woman sitting next to him.

It was true, he had seen the way that Itachi looked at Sakiko. And sometimes he saw the way that she looked at him. There was obviously something between the two of them and he didn't think that he would ever get an answer. On the other side of things, why the hell would Sakiko let him be the one to comfort her last night? Why was he the one who the demons allowed to enter her apartment and not Itachi? Did Sakiko have feelings for him? Was she just more open about them with Itachi?

He took another drink. "Do you think that she can handle it?" he inquired.

Anko looked at him. "Huh?"

"Do you think that Sakiko can handle the challenge of being on a seduction mission?"

"I think that with the right persuasion she can. She is, this is said in a non-lesbian way might I add, a beautiful kunochi, on the skinny side, but still beautiful. She has yet to figure out what she can do with her body. You and Itachi will have to work hard to sell her, she is not the type to reveal herself to just anyone."

Kakashi smirked. Sakiko had said that to him the night before the jonin exams, that neither he nor she was the type to share themselves with others.

They arrived in the small city of Lin shortly before nightfall and rented two rooms at the nearest inn. Although small, Lin was a city of the elite. Only the most wealthy and powerful lived in this town, a majority of the city was casinos, fine restaurants and bars, and clubs. Anko immediately grabbed Sakiko's hand and dragged her into the room saying something about girl time.

"Looks like we are doing boys and girls." Itachi said with a slight chuckle.

Kakashi nodded before following the boy into our room. The room was lovely. The walls were painted a dark shade of green, accented by the gold curtains that framed the windows. The two beds were side by side, divided by a dark oak table with two lamps, one on each side. There was a spacious closet and a marble bathroom.

"This is nice." Kakashi stated as he dropped his gear on the bed.

Itachi followed in suit, sitting down on his own.

"Do you think that Sakiko can do it?" he finally asked.

Kakashi couldn't help the sardonic smile that appeared on his face. "Anko seems to think that she can handle it."

Itachi looked over at Kakashi, "Anko?"

"I asked her the same question not 48 hours ago. If Anko thinks that Sakiko can handle a situation like that…" he trailed off.

Itachi laid back on his bed. "I hope so."

Kakashi mimicked the other ANBU's action. They both needed their rest, tonight was going to be along night.


End file.
